It Just Takes a Spark
by HyperGinger
Summary: Flint and Volkner love each other, but the two seem to need a nudge to get together. Volkner's Raichu is happy to volunteer! Ignitionshipping from a Raichu's POV. Mild, but rated T just to be safe.


Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or any of its characters.

* * *

I like Master Volkner, but he can be a bit of a downer sometimes. There are only three times he really smiles: when we fight a strong challenger, when he plays with us, and when HE comes around.

"Volk, good to see you, old pal!"

HE is Mister Flint. Mister Flint is supposedly some really strong trainer in a group called a Leet Four or something, but I don't care about any of that. I only care about two things: one, his fluffy hair. It's always full of electricity! I think Mister Flint has the Static ability. The other important thing about Mister Flint, though, is that Master gets really happy around him.

It's a weird type of happy, though, not like when he plays with us or when we fight strong challengers, not at all. When Mister Flint visits, Master's eyes light up, his shoulders relax, and he laughs a lot. He gets a strange, dreamy look to him. Mister Flint does all those things, too. They act just like how Jolteon and Mister Flint's Flareon act around each other; those two play, laugh, and sleep together, like they're in their own little world. I tried asking Jolteon about it once, but he just told me I wouldn't understand and walked away. I think Jolteon's a downer sometimes, too.

Master pulled out of a slump a while ago when some blue-haired trainer beat us really badly. I thought it was kind of embarrassing; that trainer's Gliscor beat me with one Earthquake, and my friends didn't fare any better, but Master brightened up for a while. Since then, though, we haven't had a real challenge, and Master's gotten down in the dumps again.

I know how to fix the problem, though! If I can get Mister Flint to stay with us forever, Master won't be able to stay sad, right? Right! All I need is a little help!

* * *

Mister Flint is visiting today. After I gave him his customary nuzzle (his hair just isn't quite poofy enough without some of my static), I gathered all his and Master's Pokémon to discuss "Operation Keep Flint Here for Good." I came up with the name all on my own!

When I finished explaining why Flint had to stay, they agreed. Most just smiled and nodded happily, but I got some other odd reactions. Electivire got this weird, creepy grin, and Mister Flint's Infernape immediately started giggling and muttering ideas to himself. Strange...but enthusiasm is great, so I'm not going to question them! Flint's Lopunny winked at me and said he didn't know I was a "match-maker;" I'm not sure what that means. Flareon and Jolteon were practically jumping for joy at the prospect, but I guess that makes sense.

I reminded them all of the mission—don't let Flint leave!—and we all set to work.

* * *

"Hey, have you noticed anything strange about our Pokémon today?"

"You mean that part where your Raichu tried to hide my sandals?"

"Well, yeah, and some other things...like the part where Electivire...uh..."

* * *

Everything's a mess! I thought I explained the plan pretty clearly, but everyone's acting strange! I really thought taking Mister Flint's shoes would work. I mean, humans can't go outside without their shoes, right? Master never does. It's, like, a law. Don't ask me why.

Electivire keeps trying to trap them in confined spaces. He almost got them in a closet, but they managed to push him away; Master just got the floors cleaned, so Electivire couldn't keep enough traction (really, it's awful. It's like an ice puzzle in here right now). That would actually keep Mister Flint here, so I don't really feel like I should stop him, but what fun could those two possibly have in a small, dark closet? I don't think Electivire understands humans very well.

Lopunny keeps messing with the dimmer switches for some reason, but it just makes Master think he needs to re-wire the house again, and he's done plenty of that already!

I think Flareon had a better idea. He thought music might want to make Mister Flint stay, and who could know his taste in music better than his own Pokémon? Flareon and Jolteon managed to start up the CD player (with some help from Infernape...y'know, for the thumbs), but it played this boring, sappy music. Jolteon called it "mood music," whatever that means. I always thought Mister Flint would prefer fun party songs, and I guess I was right, because he stood up from his spot on the couch next to Volkner to turn it off. He and Master gave us disapproving looks, and I pouted. That was the second time today; Master was already annoyed from when I tried to hide the sandals.

Infernape, for his part...keeps trying to steal clothing from them. I'm still not sure what that's all about, but their faces always turn red, and they keep getting mad at him. I heard him snicker something about "getting them in the mood," and I decided I didn't need to know. What's with all this talk of "moods" today? Master and Flint just seem to be in BAD moods right now.

This isn't going well, and it looks like we're running out of time.

* * *

"Glad you could come by, Flint. Don't be a stranger, okay?" My tail drooped as I noticed Master's face already falling. It was time for Flint to leave already, and Operation Keep Flint Here for Good was officially a failure. For once, the other Pokémon and I were on the same page; we looked down sadly. At least the floor was nice to look at, still shiny from being cleaned.

"It was good to see you, Volk!" Mister Flint pulled him into a brief hug. "Today was...interesting, huh? Hey, don't look so down, guys. We'll be back in about a month!"

A month?! No, that can't happen! That's too far away! Too upset to think about my actions, I squeaked in panic and ran toward Mister Flint one more time, feet skittering a bit on that slippery floor. I tugged desperately on his pant leg with my teeth. He just can't leave!

"Ack—Volkner, is he okay? Raichu, what's wrong?"

"Raichu, I don't know what's up with you today, but you have to let Flint go."

No, Master! I can't let this happen! Don't you know I'm doing this for your own good? I could hear Jolteon and Flareon let out sad whines.

Finally, Master ran out of patience, so he rushed over to grab me. Unfortunately, luck was not on his side, because he slipped on the floor (it's awful, it really is). I managed to jump out of the way as he fell, but Mister Flint wasn't so quick, and Master fell directly on top of him with a pained "oof!" I thought it was a bit funny, but everyone else went silent. Strangely, Master wasn't moving; he was just sort of staring at Mister Flint. Then, something weird happened: Mister Flint reached one hand into Master's hair, pulled his head down, and...pressed their mouths together? What were they doing?

Well, Master didn't seem to mind. I cocked my head in confusion and looked over at my friends, but they didn't seem perplexed like I was. Jolteon and Flareon started nuzzling each other (which was weird, because I didn't think either of them could learn Nuzzle). Lopunny had his face in his hands and sighed dreamily, while Infernape and Electivire had those weird, creepy grins on their faces again.

For the first time since Master and Mister Flint started their mouth-battle (that's what I'm calling it from now on, because I'm still not sure what it is), Master looked up at us for a second. His face was red and his eyes were unfocused; I was a bit worried about him. He reached for his Poké Balls and started returning us for some reason. Mister Flint did, too. I was still concerned, but if he was returning me, he must have felt safe, so I guess it was okay.

I couldn't sleep that night, so I stayed awake in my Poké ball. Master and Mister Flint were making strange noises all night. I know Mister Flint wouldn't hurt Master, though, so I wasn't worried.

* * *

The next morning was kind of strange. Something seemed different about Master and Mister Flint; for one thing, I think they got dressed in the dark, because they were wearing each others' pants. They didn't have any shirts on—oh, wait. Mister Flint was wearing Master's blue jacket, so I guess that's technically a shirt. I've never seen him let anyone else wear that jacket, though. They seemed closer than before, and less stressed, too. Master had an arm around Mister Flint. Maybe he thought he was cold or something.

The other Pokémon were acting even weirder. They kept slapping me on the back and congratulating me on "a job well done," as Lopunny called it. I think I missed something again; that's been happening a lot lately. Maybe I should pay attention more.

Mister Flint did leave later, but Master didn't seem depressed at all. It was quite the opposite! He gathered us all in the gym and said something about challenging someone named Aaron from the Leet Four, and we trained harder than ever before for three weeks! Master took us on a trip to some island (I like field trips, so I thought this would be fun after the hard work), but it was for more battling. We were up against this guy with a weird hairdo who only used Bug Pokémon. Maybe it was because of all our training, but I thought he was a pushover! I beat his Vespiquen and Yanmega all by myself!

After that happened, Master talked to some tall, pretty blonde lady in the same building for a while. I'm not sure what they were talking about, but by the end of it, Master was smiling, laughing, and jumping around more than I've ever seen him do before, and told us we were moving.

I was sad at first because I was going to miss our house (not those slippery floors, though; those can go to heck in a handbasket for all I care!), but our new house was bigger and nicer. In fact, it smelled familiar. Almost like...

"Volk! You're here!"

It was Mister Flint! I tried to run over and nuzzle his hair again, but Master beat me there, and they did that mouth-battle thing again. I decided it was safer to stay out of it.

Master told us that we'd be living with Mister Flint now and that the battles would be harder now that we took that wimpy bug guy's place in the Leet Four. We'd be training that much harder every day! We live on an island now instead of a beach, we don't get power outages anymore, and I still don't understand everything that happened, but I don't care about any of that. I only care about one thing: we're staying with Mister Flint forever now, and Master Volkner's smile is here to stay, too.

End

* * *

Author's Notes: Whew! This is the first fanfiction I've ever written, so any feedback is appreciated!

Raichu's my favorite Pokemon, so when I saw the episode where Volkner's Raichu immediately jumped into Flint's arms upon seeing him, I knew I had to write this. Also, no offense to Aaron. Bug Pokemon are cool, too!

By the way, yes, Flint's Lopunny is male. Yup. The concept of a male Lopunny has always seemed weird to me, but it's canon, so I kept it. Isn't it funnier this way anyway?


End file.
